Czechs Downsize Nuclear Power Ambitions

The Czech industry and trade minister has said his government will likely scale back its proposed nuclear build, aiming to generate about half of the country’s power from reactors, compared to 80 percent in an earlier plan.

In an interview with the Hospodarske Noviny newspaper, Martin Kuba described a proposal to reach 80 percent nuclear power by 2060 as economically unrealistic. Instead, he said it is more likely that the Eastern European country will complete two new units at its Temelin plant and extend the life of the reactors at Dukovany.

The six reactors currently operating in the Czech Republic represent about a third of its power generation, according to the World Nuclear Association, and the newspaper said the Temelin project would bring nuclear’s share up to about 50 percent. Westinghouse, Areva, Atomstroyexport and Skoda JS are in the process of bidding for a contract to build two new 1,200 megawatt reactors at Temelin. The country also conducted a feasibility study for a new reactor at Dukovany, a project that Kuba’s statements suggest will not go forward.